The following
is to help you brainstorm topics.You may chose one of these if you like but it would be best for you to
modify it in some way important to you.In a debate, a proposition is “resolved,” which means, forthrightly
declared, and then defended or attacked.That is one, but not the only way, to proceed.The key is to be creative and to use clear ethical
argumentation, while fallacies
of moral reasoning.

Private
property is sacred and the root of human liberty; it should not be seized,
either directly or indirectly, by those pursuing environmental goals, however
worthy. Possibly amended with ideas like: If the public through its government
wishes to take away someone’s property rights, they should provide just
compensation and have to meet democratically agreed upon procedures that
establish when they can do this against the will of the property holder.

Should
resource managers with the National Park Service killing feral pigs in Hawai’i,
or Golden Eagles on the Channel Islands off of southern California, to save endangered
plant species, on the one hand, or species of the island fox, on the other?

China’s
policies to reduce birth rates are a violation of human rights [or are, on
balance and in the light of environmental facts, morally responsible].

America should
be given back to its original inhabitants who knew how to live in sustainable
way on this continent.

Jesus [specify
god(s), guru, or prophet here] cares about the nature commands people to be
responsible stewards of nature.Possibly amended in this way: There will be no environmental harmony
until people place themselves in harmony with [specify god(s), guru, or prophet
here].

What we dream
impacts what is possible in the future; consciousness change precedes social
change.We should prioritize,
therefore, changing human consciousness, creating loving human beings is the
first step toward the New Age we all, in our best selves, know and desire.

The greatest
moral imperative today is protecting the genetic and species variety of the
planet. Possibly amended in this way: . . . and the best way to do this is to
defend, restore, and expand wilderness areas [and/or biosphere reserves, and/or
commons areas].

Environmental
catastrophe is now inevitable and it will lead to hundreds of millions if not
billions of refugees so the best nations can do, in the light of such facts, is
to prepare for triage: helping the few they can help without harming their own
citizens and the environments upon which they depend.

Human population
growth is a good thing because it brings more minds into the world to help
solve social as well as environmental problems.

Immigration
[illegal and/or legal] into the United States should be
[encouraged/discouraged] on ethical grounds, including environmental values.

Assisted
Suicide [and/or euthanasia] should be widely available choices for people
nearing the end of their life. Possibly amended in this way: . . . as long as
there are safeguards in place to prevent people from being coerced into ending
their lives earlier than would otherwise be the case / whether or not society
imposes such safeguards.

Those in
America should start by killing and eating the cows.Then, they should replace them with native species who
evolved here, such as bison, elk, and wolves.This would be a proper and ethical form of reparation for
the damage we and our ancestors have done to the continent, and an essential
part of an effort to learn our manners and how to live ethical lives here.

Because
sentient creatures have rights [or interests that should be respected] [and/or]
Because of the environmental impacts of animal agriculture] . . . individuals
ought to not eat meat or dairy products and they should do everything they can
through public policies to discourage such consumption.

Hunting should
be permitted so long as it is regulated or otherwise done in a way that does
not endanger native species or cause unnecessary suffering. Possibly amended in
this way: Moreover, hunters should be allowed to sell what they kill to
restaurants and markets, which is usually illegal.This would be a way to establish “extractive reserves,” as
has been done for forest people in the Amazon, so local people have an interest
in keep forests and natural areas standing, rather than only in cutting or
mining them for short term profit.

Ecofeminism
articulates hypotheses that are plausible in the light of historical and
scientific data and consequently, to solve the environmental crisis we must
first [or simultaneously] overturn patriarchal attitudes and behaviors.

The real enemy
of nature and the cause of environmental decline is social hierarchy among
human beings.

Non-anthropocentrism,
and ideas of the “intrinsic value” of nature, are impractical at best and
nonsense at worst.They provide no
plausible ground for an environmental ethic.

The world is
in such profound trouble that only a spiritual revolution, in which through
ritual [or other practices such as ______], people come to recognize that they
belong to nature and develop a corresponding reverence for it.

The priority
for morally passionate and environmentally concerned people should be to tackle
environmental injustices, systems, practices, and policies that differentially
harm the poor and minority populations.

If we could
just get the government off the backs of people, for example and first of all,
by lowering taxes, we could solve environmental problems by unleashing human
creative potential.

Mountaintop
removal for coal mining is/is not morally permissible.

The “Limits to
Growth” thesis neglects how scarcity produces innovation, which reduces costs,
increases efficiency, or otherwise creates ways to produce the products and
services people needs and desire that do not require the commodities that have
become scarce but used to be needed for such products and services.False ideas, such as, that there are
limits to growth, lead to counterproductive prescriptions, which prevent us
from improving the environment and enhancing human wellbeing.

Technology is
not the solution but the problem; technological society should, therefore, be
dismantled. Possibly amended in this way . . . by all necessary means.

The most
plausible and hopeful approach to environmental ethics was provided by
__________, and here are the reasons why: ____________.

The most
ethical thing one can do is to withdraw from capitalist market society, as much
as possible, and establish alternative and sustainable models of human
community that do not erode biodiversity.In short, lifestyle activism is the only plausible path toward
sustainability.

The world
needs and ought to establish [or does not need and should avoid] strong,
international treaties to protect the environment, which are enforceable by an
internationally established and well-funded law enforcement agency and judicial
processes.

If we examine
all the facts and conduct a careful risk assessment it is clear that nuclear
power should be rapidly developed as part of a comprehensive, global strategy
to reduce global warming and the mostly negative changes that it is
precipitating.